The sounds of Brisbane project Grids/Units/Planes (GUP) are that of a cloudy, diffuse space that glitches and hums in a languorous rich texture: awe-inspiring and transfixing. I have always thought that the magic in effective instrumental music is the ability to tell stories and create images without words, and in ‘Diverge and Coalesce’, GUP have done just that. The EP paints a complex layered soundscape that captures images of modernity and automation and delivers it in breathtaking colours: replete with endless spaces and reverberation, sometimes teetering on the brink of collapse and disintegration, sometime ascending with power and stature.
Easy comparisons would be the works of Kraftwerk, Mogwai and Sigur Rós with the power to stun with monumental movements and cinematic vistas, but with a brittle delicacy.
Opening track ‘Harp Particle Pursuit’ has a reflective pace where the tinkling, wandering pianos and synths become borne by the sticky percussive heartbeat:
‘Follow The City’s Lights’ is statuesque and bold with its rolling repeating synth/string refrains that build up, then recede, while the clickety clack of the percussion moves the track relentlessly forward like a train over railway tracks. It is track filled with expressive emotion.
‘Overlight Ascension Arp’ drifts over billowing synths while a hyperactive percussive bedrock trills underneath, huge and dramatic shifts that billow like clouds.
The glitchy textures drive ‘Moon Signal Interlude’, creating a sense of vulnerability and anxiety placated only by the haunting wisps of synth on the horizon. ‘Follow The City’s Lights II’ takes a darker tone with the sonorous bass synth looming in the basement and distorted percussion contrasted against a lightly tinkling synth.
The EP ends with the brightness of ‘Finite Numbers’ with its pocket calculator twittering: exhibiting a gentle delicacy despite a febrile energy.
GUP is the work of Brisbane producer, Andrew Foley who has created an out of worldly experience in this album. ‘Diverge and Coalesce’ creates an intergalactic sonic landscape that seemingly incorporates the sounds of vintage computers with their gloopy pop sounds and structures, with warm organic instrumentation, creating a delicious tension throughout. Space age gothic shoegaze instrumentals that spark and fizz. An expression, in other words, of the album’s title: separating and combining sounds.
To add to the sense of wonder, Foley has also created an electronic text adventure game (like ‘Zork’ on Commodore 64). You can fight holographic entities, engage cyberpunk tech and solve puzzles in this short, glitchy text adventure. People who finish this quest will have access to download or stream a secret, unreleased Grids/Units/Planes track. Play the text adventure and judge the track for yourself here.
GUP is a new addition to the eternally wonderful and innovative False Peak Records fold, nestled amongst some of the most fascinating artists in Australia. You can get ‘Diverge and Coalesce’ through the link below:
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